Start of construction for offshore operations building at Sassnitz Mukran

18/05/2016

The construction of the operations building for the Wikinger offshore wind farm has commenced today (Wednesday, 18 May 2016) with a ground-breaking ceremony. It is the first settlement at the new service harbour of Mukran Port. Starting next year, Iberdrola will manage and maintain its 70 offshore wind turbines from Sassnitz-Mukran. The first piles for the foundations have already been installed.

The Rostock branch of construction company GOLDBECK will erect the operations building, which has two storeys, as well as the attached warehouse at berth no. 1 of the port. Juergen Blume, Managing Director of Iberdrola Renovables Deutschland GmbH: “After receiving the final official authorisations last week, we have already started construction today. It is an important step in order to be able to supply 350,000 households with clean energy from next year onwards.” Frank Kracht, Mayor of the town of Sassnitz also took part in the ground-breaking ceremony.

Harm Sievers, Managing Director of Faehrhafen Sassnitz GmbH, underlined the significance of the new constructions project: “Iberdrola is the first company to establish its operations and maintenance base at this location – many will follow. These are long-term settlements, which also mean associated jobs.”

GOLDBECK is responsible for the design, planning and construction of the new building, which includes control, common and conference rooms as well as sanitary facilities. In addition, it also adheres to the German energy saving regulations and has a photovoltaic system on its roof. A connected warehouse will be built next to the new operations building, which will house smaller spare parts for maintenance and repair services. The building itself will be used for the daily surveillance of the wind farm.

Successful construction start
Meanwhile, the construction work taking place offshore has also successfully started. The first piles for the foundations were successfully installed by the installation vessel “GIANT 7”, mobilised from Rostock. The wind turbines, which are currently being produced in Bremerhaven and Stade, will follow in early 2017.

About the project

With an investment of around 1.4 Billion Euros, the Wikinger project has great economic significance for the complete supply chain. Hundreds of jobs are connected to its construction. Starting operation in 2017, the wind park will produce 350 MW of clean energy for more than 350,000 households, which corresponds to more than 20 percent of the total annual consumption of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.